-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A three-story museum and sanctuary dedicated to Islam near the World Trade Center site in New York is the latest plan from a developer who failed to build his `` ground zero '' mosque amid local and national opposition more than three years ago .

Rather than the 15-story , $ 100 million mosque and community center that raised such ire , developer Sharif El-Gamal now plans a smaller , three-story museum and sanctuary at 45-51 Park Place , to be designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel .

`` New York 's arts and cultural institutions have always been a great inspiration to me and I consider this opportunity to create a museum to be a true privilege , '' El-Gamal said in a statement released April 30 through his publicist , Hank Sheinkopf . `` Commissioning an architect of Jean Nouvel 's talent is a dream come true . ''

In 2010 , El-Gamal faced opposition to his mosque proposal from some families of September 11 victims , anti-Islamic activists and others who thought the mosque was to close to the World Trade Center site . President Barack Obama said he supported the right of Muslims to build a house of worship on private property , adding that his support was not a comment on the `` wisdom '' of such a decision . U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and former Speaker of the House of Representatives and `` CNN Crossfire '' co-host Newt Gingrich joined the debate , coming out against the site 's location .

El-Gamal tells CNN why he wanted to build the mosque

Although he did n't lay out a budget or timeline for construction , El-Gamal 's application to demolish the existing buildings at 45 Park Place and 51 Park Place were approved April 7 , a New York City Department of Buildings spokesman confirmed . But the developer has n't filed the necessary paperwork for permits to start demolition , the spokesman said .

El-Gamal 's news release did n't offer many specifics about what the museum will showcase , although `` it will likely display rotating exhibitions of art and host academic and cultural events . ''

It 's not clear how much more opposition he might face three years later , but El-Gamal has already taken at least one step to better negotiate the rough-and-tumble debate around New York development : He 's hired veteran New York publicist Sheinkopf to manage his communications .

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Developer Sharif El-Gamal plans to build a museum near ground zero

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El-Gamal previously planned a 15-story , $ 100 million mosque near the site

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The new plan calls for a three-story museum designed by architect Jean Nouvel